Nieto’s approval rating in Mexico stands at about 23%, even lower than Trump’s here. The Mexican people hate Trump so much, beating the crap out of him as a pinata has become a popular party game.

So Nieto meets Trump and says later that he told Trump Mexico wouldn’t pay for a wall.

Trump, not hearing what he wanted, claims the wall never came up in the conversation.

It raises questions about Trump’s ability to follow through on any of his boasts about how he’s going to make all the world’s leaders bend to his will. There he was, in a face-off with the guy who’d write the check for his wall, and Trump never even mentioned it?

Then they did a joint news conference, and instead of interrupting Trump and boldly stating, “Hell, no, we’ll never buy you a wall, and we’re not criminals, rapists, and drug-dealers!” before cameras and reporters, Nieto inexplicably stood silent and let Trump run the show.

Remember in the movie, Love, Actually, when Hugh Grant as the British prime minister puts the lecherous, suspiciously Bush-like U.S. president in his place at a press conference? This could have been that moment. Here it is (ignore the subtitles, the audio is in English)…

If Nieto had stood up to Trump, his approval ratings would have instantly soared, and he’d have earned the world’s gratitude. He’d have sent Trump back with his tail between his legs to make his epic foreign policy rant in Arizona that night, with every threat against Mexico thoroughly repudiated and recorded for posterity.

With video testimony from Mexico’s president, if Trump had persisted in his nonsense about getting a free wall on Mexico’s tab and deporting Mexicans along with everyone else, no one could ignore the fact that he’s a racist, raving lunatic.

Nieto could have achieved all that. But he did none of it.

Ireland’s Prime Minister Enda Kenny made Trump blink before a planned visit by saying he would tell Trump in person how racist and dangerous his comments are.

Trump canceled that stop in Ireland because there’s nothing a chicken-shit bully hates worse than being confronted.